Sylvania



W. KELSO.

COUPLING AND YOKE CONNECTION.

APPLICATION FILED JUNE 4; I920 Patented Dec. 6, 1921.

III vIIIIMIIIHHHHP H I HH' M'fness W. KELSO.

COUPLING AND YOKE CONNECHON. APPLlC-ATlON mien JUNE 4. 1920. 1,399,563,Patented D66. 6, 1921.

2 SHEETS-SHEET 2- UNITED STATES:

PATENT OFFICE.

WILLIAM KELSO, OF PITTSBURGH, PENNSYLVANIA, ASSIGNOR TO THE MCCONWAY 8;

TORLEY COMPANY, OF YITTSBURGH, I?ENNSYLVANIA A CORPORATION OF PENN-vCOUPLING AND YOKE ooivnncr'ion.

Specificationof Letters Patent. P t ted D 6, 19 21.

Application filed June 4, 1920. Serial No. 386,532;

To all whom it may concern Be it known that I, WILLIAM KELso, a citizenof the United States, residing at Pittsburgh, in the county of Alleghenyand State of Pennsylvania, have invented certain new and usefulImprovements in G011 pling and Yoke Connections; and I do hereby declarethe following to be a full, clear, and exact description of theinvention, such as will enable others skilled in the art to which itappertains to make and use the same.

My invention relates to a coupler and yok connection for the draftrigging of railway cars, and is especially designed to render couplersof the type with which freight cars are equipped available forapplication to passenger cars. As is well known, the car couplers in useupon freight carsare commonly applied to the yokeof the draft rig to beeither rigidly connected thereto or capable of longitudinal slidingmovementonly. Upon passenger cars it is customary to pivotally attachthe couplerto the yoke so that the coupler may swing to either side ofits normal position as may be required when the car passes around acurve. I

My invention enables couplers which are not primarily designed for thatpurpose to be pivotally attached to the draft yoke in a simple andefiicient manner enabling them" to execute the desired swingingmovements.

The principalobjects ofthe invention are accomplished by attaching thestem of the car coupler to the yoke through the intervention of anintermediate member which is provided at itsrear endwith a curved faceadapted to cooperate with a correspondingly curved transverselyextending portion of the yoke and, which also has in advance of andconcentric with said curved rear face a plurality of oppositely disposedcurved I shoulders or trunnions of less radii of curvature, the yokebeing provided at its forward. end with oppositely disposed concavelycurved bearing faces corresponding to those of the trunnions andseparated from the curved face of the yoke which cooperates with therear end of the intermediate member by a side opening in the yokethrough which the trunnions and rear'end of the in- I mediate member 3wlth'relation to the draft diate member being providedwith key slots"adapted to receive key means extending.

through a slot in the coupler stem near the rear end thereof. l

In the "drawings' illustrating the best mode I in which I contemplateapplying the .principle of my invention,-

F'gure 1 is a plan view of a coupler and yoke connection embodying theinvention, therea-r end of the draft yoke and the forward portion of thecar coupler being broken away. 1 I Fig.2 is a side elevation of thedevice.

Fig; 3 is a section on the line 3&3, Fig. 2, the key means for attachingthecoupler to the intermediate member being shown in plan. l

I Fig. 4 is a section on the line 4 4, Fig. 1. Y

Fig. 5 is a'section on the line 5-5, Fig. 2. I

In the drawings, 1 is the stem of the car coupler, 2is the draft yoke;and 3is the intermediate member-through which the coupler is pivotallyconnected to the yoke.

The yoke 2 is shown as provided with the usual parallel arms l which areadapted to receive a cushioning unit (not shown) between them. The arms4: are integrally united at their forward endsby a transverselyextending tie bar 5 the inner face of which is adapted to engagetheforward end ofthe cushioning unitto impart bufling strainsthereto andthe outer or forward face 6 of which is cylindrically curved. In advanceof the transversely extending bar. 5 the yoke is provided withoppositely disposed circularly curved bearing faces 7; Y

which, as shown, are preferably undercut or of conical form.Theconcavely curved bearing faces 7 are concentric with the for wardlyfacing concavely curved face 6, but their radii of curvature are smallerthan.

that of the surface Gin order that comparatively deep bearing socketsmay be formed for the reception of the correspondingly curved andundercut trunnions 8 borne by the intermediate member 3. The sides ofthe yoke 2 are openfin advance of the transversely extending bar 5 andthe curved bearing face 6 isspaced rearwardly from the oppositelydisposed" bearing faces 7 at the forwardend of the yoke a distanceallowing the assembly and disassembly of the interyoke whensaidintermediatemember has nected.

ployedfor this purpose consist of two 00- operating wedge elements 1 1and 15 respecright angles to that which it normally occupied. In theaxis of curvature of the curved faces 6 and 7 the yoke 2 is preferablyprovided with alined pivot pin openings 9 which receive a bolt 10 thatpasses through the centers of the trunnions 8 as well as through therearuend of the stem 1 of the coupler.

Theintermediate member 3 is formed with a forwardly opening recessvorsocket 11 of angular cross section corresponding to that of-thegcouplerstem 1, said socket preferably extending inwardly a sufficient distanceto termediate member are provided with transversely alined slots 18which are adaptedto receive the key means by which the coupler stem 1and intermediate member 3 are con- The key means preferably emtively.The inner edge of the key member 14 is recessed at its center to affordclearance for the pivot'bolt 10 which latterthus serves to maintain themember if in -assem .bledposition; but for this latter purpose it isyalsopreferred to form'themember 141 at its outer ends with rearwardlyextending lugs 16;which are adapted to .ove-r'lap the sides of theintermediate member 3 when the parts are in assembled position. The com=plemental wedgeg key 15 maybe-retained in P05111011 by employing asingle cotter 17 which is passed through the narrow end of thewedge v15afterthe latter is inplace.

' In assembling-the device the intermediate member :3 is turnedhorizontally until it -stands'atr1ght anglesto 1ts normal position,

when its rear end may be inserted between the oppositely disposed curvedbearing-faces o7;and-the forwardly facing concave surface 6 of the yoke.The trunnions 8 may then be advanced until they properly engagethecurved bearing faces 7, after which the in 'termediate member is rotateduntil its curved rear end stands in front of the correspondingly curved'face G of the yoke. The stem 1 of the car coupler is'then inserted inthe socket 11 of the intermediate membenand the wedges 1% and 15constituting the key means are put in place. The pivot=bolt 10 then maybe inserted through the openings provided therefor in the yoke,in theintermediate-member, and in the coupler stem. lVhile the rearwardextension of the intermediate member 3 by cooperating with the forwardface 6 of the transverse bar of the yoke serves to maintain the.trunnlons 8 in proper "relation to thecurvedlbearing faces I of theyoke, it is preferred to@ employ the'bolt'10for a similar purpose andalso to assist the undercut trunnlons S in preventing any spreading orseparationhoi theioppositelydisposed bearing faces 7 at the forward endof the yoke. The car coupler may be removed for the purpose of replacingit invcase it is'damagedbymerely withdrawing the wedge'keys 14; andf15.

1 claimizfi y 1. In acoupler and yoke connection, the combination with acoupler having .a stem provided with a key slot near its rear end, of ayoke provided at its forward end with oppositely disposed rearwardlyfacing curved bearing faces and having a forwardly facing curved facelocated rearwardly Qo'f said oppositely disposed curved faces and alsohaving a side opening between said "for- *ardly facing curved face andsaid rearwardly facing curved bearing faces, an intermediate memberbetween said coupler and yoke and pivotally connected to the'latter, andkey means extending into said slot of the coupler stem for connectingsaid coupler and said intermediate member, said inter- -mediate.memberbeing provided with oppositely disposed trunnions. respectively engagingsaid rearwardly facing curved bearing faces of the yoke and being curvedatltsrear end to cooperate with said'forwardly facing vcurved faceofsaid yoke.

2. 111 a coupler and yoke connection,,the c )mb1nat1on WltlljLCOllPlQl'havlng .a'stem,

of a yokeprovidedat its forward end with oppositelydisposed rearwardlyfacing concavely curved bearing faces ,andvha'v n a forwardly facingconcavely curved face spaced rearwardly from and, concentric with saidrearwardly facing bearing faces and also having a sideopening locatedbetween said forwardly facing curvedface and said rearwardly facingcurved faces, the radii of curvature ofssaidrearwardly facing curved.faces being less than-that. of saidjforwardly facing curved face, an iiitermediate member between said coupler zand .y, )ke,.and means forconnecting said coupler-stem andintermediate member, said intermediatemember being provided in advance of its .rear end withoppositelyidisposejd trunnions having convexly curvedfaces;correspondingto and adapted to engage said rearwardly facingcurved bearing'faces.

3.111 a coupler and yoke conncctiomthe combination with y acouplerihaving a stem, of a yoke provided atits forwardend withoppositely disposed c'onoavely curved bearing faces and having aconcavely' curved face spaced rearwardlyfrom and concentric with saidoppositely dlsposed curved bearlng faces, said yoke having a sideopening located between said oppositely disposed hearing faces and thesaid curved face spaced rearwardly therefrom, an intermediate memberinterposed between said coupler and yoke, and a key for connecting saidcoupler stem and said intermediate member, said inintermediate memberbeing provided forwardly of its rear end with oppositely disposed curvedshoulders corresponding to and respectively adapted to engage said oppositiely disposed curved bearing faces of the yo (e. 7

4t. In a coupler and yoke connection, the combination with a couplerhaving a stem, of a yoke provided at its forward end with oppositelydisposed concavely curved bearing faces and having a transverselyextending portion adapted to engage the front end of a cushioning unlt,an lntermedlate member between said coupler and yoke, said inter-7mediate member having a curved rear face adapted to cooperate with thesaid transversely extending portion of the yoke and having oppositelydisposed curved shoulders in advance of and concentric with said curvedrear face and correspondingto and respectively adapted to engage saidoppositely disposed curved bearing faces of the yoke, and a pinextending through said coupler stem, intermediate member and yoke in theaxis of curvature of said curved faces. In a coupler and yokeconnection, the

combination with a coupler having a stem pivot pin extending throughsaid pivot pin hole in the coupler stem and through said intermediatemember and yoke. g

6. In a coupler and yoke connection, the combination with a couplerhaving a'stem provided with a slot and with a pivot pin hole rearwardlyof said slot and extending at an angle thereto, of a yoke, a memberintermediate of said yoke and coupler, a pivot pin extending throughsaid pivot pin hole 01. the coupler stem and through said intermediatemember and yoke, and key means extending through said slot forconnecting said coupler, to said intermediate member, said key meanshaving a recess adapted to receive said pivot pm.

In testlmony-whereof I afiix my signature.

XVILLIAM KELSO.

